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CA Lawmaker Sorry For Bringing Gun to Airport, But Says He Needs One Because of Illegal Immigration Death Threats

Calif. Assemblyman Tim Donnelly Says Illegal Immigration Death Threats Require Him to Carry Gun

California Assemblyman Tom Donnelly, cited Wednesday after he tried to bring a loaded gun on a plane, said he's usually armed because of death threats he's received for his anti-illegal immigration views. (AP Photo)

A California assemblyman detained for trying to bring a loaded gun on an airplane said it was a mistake, but that he‘s usually armed because of the death threats he’s received for his anti-illegal immigration views.

Tim Donnelly, a Tea Party-backed Republican from San Bernardino, told reporters he forgot to remove the gun from his briefcase before heading to the airport Wednesday, calling it “an unfortunate mistake.”

Security screeners spotted the loaded .45-caliber Colt Mark IV pistol and an ammunition magazine with an additional five rounds in his carry-on luggage as the assemblyman was headed for a Sacramento-bound flight, the Los Angeles Times reported. He was briefly detained, cited and then released. He faces a maximum punishment of one year in jail and a $1,000 fine.

Donnelly said he “tends to always be armed” because of death threats he’s received over of his fierce anti-illegal immigration views. He’s launched a referendum to overturn the Dream Act — California’s new law that allows illegals to qualify for state-funded financial aid to pay for college — and is the founder of a local chapter of the Minuteman Project, a citizen volunteer border patrol group.

He said everything started Saturday when he was in his garage with a gun on a nearby workbench, according to the Sacramento Bee.

“My wife came home and I haven’t wanted to go into a lot of the detail with her about this, so I stuck it in the nearest bag,” he said.

Donnelly said he forgot to take the gun out, even after entering the airport, and that the briefcase “was about as heavy as it is when I carry my laptop, so it didn’t register.”

The assemblyman said he was standing in his socks waiting for his briefcase to clear security when an airport screener’s facial expression suddenly changed and a supervisor was called.

But despite Donnelly’s claim about receiving death threats, neither the offices of the California Assembly speaker nor the sergeant at arms, which provides security for members, said he’s reported any such threats to them or requested extra security, according to the LA Times.

Donnelly was elected in 2010 on a primarily anti-illegal immigration platform.

Comments (55)

1 2
  • SHIPMONEY100TRILLION
    Posted on January 6, 2012 at 8:02am

    Everyone that is not a criminal should have the right to carry on any flight.

    Report Post »  
    • jnobfan
      Posted on January 6, 2012 at 2:25pm

      Archie Bunker had it right 40 years ago when Cubans first started hijacking aircraft.
      He said that everyone should be issued a gun when they board the plane so nobody would dare try to use one.
      Got to admit it would work

      Report Post »  
    • Secret Squirrel
      Posted on January 7, 2012 at 12:29pm

      .
      Another case of a politician saying the law shouldn’t apply to him.
      If you need a gun, don’t you think some others might also?
      Hello, Kalifornia?

      Report Post » Secret Squirrel  
  • schlepnier
    Posted on January 6, 2012 at 4:50am

    Must be nice to be a politician in the solcialist republic of kaliforniaconsider the right to bear arms is basically illegal now with open carry banned and 99.9% of conceal carry permits denied for no other reason than the local sheriff/police chief doesn’t wanna issue them.

    Report Post » schlepnier  
  • beckyspatflaveredstew
    Posted on January 5, 2012 at 8:57pm

    Hey Chief George, why not reinstate prohibition, it seems we are running out of rich kennedys, who made their fortunes by it. While your at it maybe you can repeal the second amendment, or just explain what “Shall not be infringed” means.
    ,

    Report Post »  
  • rebelwuf
    Posted on January 5, 2012 at 6:44pm

    So he faces a possible year in jail and $1000 fine. But when the illegals that he is trying to stop get caught, they get free government benefits.

    Report Post »  
  • This_Individual
    Posted on January 5, 2012 at 6:39pm

    Let’s make some changes my fellow Californians.

    http://stopab131.com/

    Contact your representatives : http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/

    Report Post »  
  • moparcar
    Posted on January 5, 2012 at 6:16pm

    Just enjoying our 2nd amendment rights which this goverment keeps trying to take away. Read the Bill of Rights and see what it says.

    Report Post »  
  • dorightfearnothing
    Posted on January 5, 2012 at 5:27pm

    Everybody going to L.A. should be issued a firearm…. Big deal.

     
    • Yeah_Buddy
      Posted on January 6, 2012 at 12:45pm

      These illegals ony want to cut your lawn. Consider gangs, graffiti, barrios, crime, schools, heathcare and not being able to communicate a bonus.

      Report Post »  
  • recoveringneocon
    Posted on January 5, 2012 at 4:53pm

    Rick Santorum is stonewalling gun owners.
    He is refusing to tell gun owners in NH and SC where he stands on important Second Amendment issues.
    Despite repeated attempts for Rick Santorum to return his National Association for Gun Rights Presidential Survey , he has time and time again remained silent.

    Report Post » recoveringneocon  
    • ChiefGeorge
      Posted on January 5, 2012 at 5:22pm

      Had a colleague make this mistake while traveling on business. He was fired immediately. Too bad!

      Report Post » ChiefGeorge  
    • Rational Man
      Posted on January 6, 2012 at 2:05am

      Santorum does not appear to be anti-gun to me. But then, I read his voting record CAREFULLY.
      He voted against laws that looked good on the surface, but had an extention of the assault weapons ban hidden in it.
      Santorum may not be a Charlton Heston, but he most certainly IS NOT “anti-gun”. That is a lie!

      Voted YES on prohibiting lawsuits against gun manufacturers.

      Voted NO on banning lawsuits against gun manufacturers for gun violence.
      (that looks bad until you find the weapons ban in the bill)

      Voted NO on background checks at gun shows.

      Voted YES on more penalties for gun & drug violations.
      (bad vote because of the paritculars in the bill)

      Voted YES on loosening license & background checks at gun shows.

      Voted YES on maintaining current law: guns sold without trigger locks.

      http://www.ontheissues.org/Domestic/Rick_Santorum_Gun_Control.htm

      He is not Joe Manchin out there shooting targets at 20yds with a high powered, scoped rifle to get re-elected, but he IS NOT “anti-gun”……………………….

      Report Post » Rational Man  
  • Tom K
    Posted on January 5, 2012 at 4:40pm

    Tim Donnelly made some mistakes: (1) Fill your wife in on what is going on – if you are a target, so is she. Both need to have some gun training and should carry. (2) Change your travel mode. Schedule your travel accordingly and use anything other that air travel. It may take longer. Ask yourself, are some of those meetings really necessary ? (3) State and Federal Lawmakers MUST abide by the same laws and rules as everyone else. If it is in violation of the Constitution, abolish it. (4) How about working to un-do the laws and regulations that have overcrowded California with illegals in the first place. Make the State safer for EVERYONE. (5) Get some body guards, just like the liberal movie stars. The stars hate guns unless those guns are protecting them.

    Report Post »  
  • justangry
    Posted on January 5, 2012 at 4:35pm

    Don’t be sorry, man! If everyone flying the friendly skies were packing, Jihadists with boxcutters wouldn’t be able to crash planes into our buildings.

    Report Post » justangry  
    • ChiefGeorge
      Posted on January 5, 2012 at 5:23pm

      Just add alcohol available onboard and who knows what would happen….not a good idea.

      Report Post » ChiefGeorge  
    • dorightfearnothing
      Posted on January 5, 2012 at 5:35pm

      Great idea!! @chiefgoerge alcohol has nothing to do with it, since it does for people like you eliminate alcohol from air travel, problem solved. I choose my American right to self defence over alcohol consumption every day….

      Report Post »  
    • justangry
      Posted on January 5, 2012 at 6:03pm

      Meh, drunks are slow on the draw.

      Report Post » justangry  
    • jcannon98188
      Posted on January 6, 2012 at 2:08am

      @ChiefGeorge

      No different scenario than if a drunk guy has a gun walking around town, or in his own home.

      Report Post »  
  • gmoneytx
    Posted on January 5, 2012 at 4:31pm

    Now that’s funny, if he didn’t think about the problem with bringing a firearm into an airport, he probably doesn’t know how to shoot the weapon either. What a moron…Well not surprising, he is from Californica you know!

    Report Post » gmoneytx  
    • DYNA
      Posted on January 5, 2012 at 4:37pm

      Give him a break. He is one of the better people of California fighting the liberals of California.

      Report Post »  
    • VRW Conspirator
      Posted on January 5, 2012 at 5:58pm

      this guy is one of the good guys…the idiot is Jane Harmon or whatever her name was that is totally a socialist liberal hack CA congresswoman who votes for all types of gun control regulations… BUT….she carries and has a CHL because her local office she travels too is in a bad part of town…so it is good enough for her to protect herself but not us lowly serfs.
      i can deal with people having different ideas about governance and social issues and all…what i can’t stand is a hypocrite that thinks they are outside the law because they have a special issue or think themselves smarter, better, superior by birth right….so they don’t have to obey the laws like us little people…
      unfortunately…most of the legislature in CA is made up of people like that…in both parties…hence the CA state of affairs and why I left there in August and moved to Texas

      Report Post » VRW Conspirator  
    • HeldHostageInCA
      Posted on January 6, 2012 at 1:43am

      Tim Donnelly represents me and my city where I live. When we elected him I couldn’t have felt more proud of the people in my community. We live in liberal land and we elected him. He seems to be the only one in Sacramento that is fighting for us. He‘s making a big stink about the wrongs that are being done to us and he’s getting noticed. There are still rational people in California still. Keep fighting Tim Donnelly.

      Report Post »  
  • jungle J
    Posted on January 5, 2012 at 4:03pm

    If I were a public figure and actively fighting against the illegal take over of America by illegal aliens I would always be armed

    Report Post »  
  • VoicesofOppression
    Posted on January 5, 2012 at 3:49pm

    It is clear by the actions of this administration and others before, that our Constitution has become words on a paper instead of what it is a foundation of this United States. Each and every lawmaker, congress and especially President are stepping all over our Constitution without any recourse from the very people we elect to honor and protect the rights of its citizens. Soon the only right we will have will be the right to “obey” without question. We are so afraid to see what is standing right in front of our faces Republican/Democrat it does not matter there all the same and we are loosing our right to have a right little by little each and every day.

    Report Post »  
    • momsense
      Posted on January 5, 2012 at 5:22pm

      Do we need qany more proof of this that he appointments the dictator has just made?

      Report Post »  
  • DeepintheHeart
    Posted on January 5, 2012 at 3:43pm

    Look, when you carry concealed you learn where you can and can’t take that thang! Can’t take it in a federal building. Can’t take into an airport. C’mon, Assemblyman. Even if you get threats, you gotta abide by the rules. Let‘s just hope Holder doesn’t send him to Gitmo for indefinite detention without habeas corpus.

    Report Post »  
    • thadius357
      Posted on January 5, 2012 at 9:59pm

      You most certainly can carry in an airport – just not past security. Details by the state the airport is in. It is also quite easy to check your gun in luggage.

      Report Post »  
  • lukerw
    Posted on January 5, 2012 at 3:36pm

    From which Planet… are the people of California?

    Report Post » lukerw  
  • republic2011
    Posted on January 5, 2012 at 3:08pm

    What the hell happened to the 2nd Amendment? By rights, he should get a slap on the wrist and be allowed to check the damn thing. The problem is that the socialist state of California has passed so many unconstitutional gun laws that this guy now faces a year in jail for making the mistake of exercising his 2nd Amendment rights. I agree that the Airlines should be the ones to regulate this. If they want you to check your gun at the door, they should dictate that… not the government. The same goes for any establishment (restaurants, movie theaters, etc.). Can you imagine how much more civil our society would be if everyone had to the potential to carry? I can guarantee it would be a lot more civil and criminals would think more than twice about committing some of the crimes they attempt and pull off today. I am so sick of the US going communist.

    Report Post »  
    • dealer@678
      Posted on January 5, 2012 at 3:19pm

      You can bet your butt the illegal mexicans are armed but they have more rights than us

      Report Post »  
    • recoveringneocon
      Posted on January 5, 2012 at 3:35pm

      Rick Santorum supported radical anti-gunner Arlen Specter in his bid for reelection in 2004. Specter was running against pro-gun candidate Pat Toomey. Specter went on to wreak havoc against gun rights in the U.S. Senate

      Rick Santorum does have a long history of supporting gun control.

      In the 90s, he voted to support the Lautenberg Gun Ban, which stripped law-abiding gun owners of their Second Amendment rights for life, simply because they spanked their children.

      He voted for a bill in 1999 disguised as an attempt to increase penalties on drug traffickers with guns… but it also included a provision to require federal background checks at gun shows.

      And then he voted with gun-controlling Democrats Dianne Fienstein and Frank Lautenberg to mandate locks on handguns in 2005.

      He also supported and openly campaigned for anti-gun New Jersey governor, Christine Todd Whitman.

      Report Post » recoveringneocon  
  • momrules
    Posted on January 5, 2012 at 3:02pm

    If I were a public figure and actively fighting against the illegal take over of America by illegal aliens I would always be armed. But why keep the death threats from his wife? She should be made aware of any and all threats to her husband and by extension to herself and their children if there are any.

    It’s a shame that he carried the gun on the plane. This is the kind of thing the TSA and Homeland Security love so they can justify their existance.

    Report Post »  
    • Ishmot2
      Posted on January 5, 2012 at 3:33pm

      It didn’t say, he keep information about the death threats from his wife. “My wife came home and I haven’t wanted to go into a lot of the detail with her about this, so I stuck it in the nearest bag,” he said. Meaning the gun, he didn’t put the threats in the nearest bag.

      Report Post »  
  • SpankDaMonkey
    Posted on January 5, 2012 at 2:54pm

    .
    Regan really screwed us by giving Amnesty to all those Illegal Mexicans……..We all need to carry a gun now days………….

    Report Post » SpankDaMonkey  
    • MYHEROISRON
      Posted on January 5, 2012 at 3:05pm

      … if this is indeed what happened then it wasn’t very smart, Tim.

      Report Post » MYHEROISRON  
  • Capt. Ron
    Posted on January 5, 2012 at 2:51pm

    I wish I could vote for him we need more like him!

    Report Post » Capt. Ron  
  • Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}
    Posted on January 5, 2012 at 2:51pm

    Watch now for Holder to come down on him like a ton of bricks. Obama is going to play this for all its worth.

    Report Post » Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}  
  • cessna152
    Posted on January 5, 2012 at 2:49pm

    Really? Carry on? How stupid are you? You can only check it and it has to be in a locked gun case, in locked luggage and the airline rep checking the bag is to be notified.
    I still think it is BS all these gun regulations. It should be up to the airline only…period!

    Report Post » cessna152  
    • RichNGadsden
      Posted on January 5, 2012 at 3:06pm

      I brought a SIG P226 and a Series 89 Colt 1911A1 back from one of my German tours back in ‘88. You wouldn’t believe the massive amount of paperwork I went through. I also had to have them in an approved and locked pistol box with tags tied to the trigger guards with the tags themselves extended outside of the box. Then the box was locked in my luggage. Had we been diverted to any airport in NJ or NY instead of Charlotte, SC I would have become an instant criminal even with all of the Customs and ATF paperwork that I had with me. And, had to have with me. There was extra paperwork on the .45 since ATF had to clear the serial number with lists of the Government’s .45 serial number. The ATF forms had to be sent ONLY by overnight mail….from Germany. That is the only way they would accept it knowing all along that it would arrive no faster than regular mail. This was back in ‘88. I’d hate to see what our service personnel have to go through these days. That is, if they can travel to such places with personal weapons and return with them.

      Report Post » RichNGadsden  
    • progressiveslayer
      Posted on January 5, 2012 at 3:27pm

      @RICHNGADSDEN Aren’t regulations grand? We pay these idiots to think up new laws and regulations to further erode our liberty,and every gun law passed since the second amendment is unconstitutional.

      Report Post » progressiveslayer  
  • OklahomaBound
    Posted on January 5, 2012 at 2:47pm

    There are probably more illegals in CA then there are Americans, if this guy is going to have a anti-illegal alien platform in that commie state he needs to have several bodyguards with him at all times.

    Report Post » OklahomaBound  
  • sWampy
    Posted on January 5, 2012 at 2:42pm

    How screwed up is our legal system, shouldn’t it be a $50K fine and or a year in jail. Your fine should at least equal the cost to house you for a year. Why should the tax payers pay to house someone for a year just because they carried a gun somewhere they shouldn’t?

    Report Post »  
    • JLGunner
      Posted on January 5, 2012 at 2:47pm

      How about we pay attention to the 2nd Amendment. Why do we pay for all the housing for illegal criminals and welfare for their families?

      Report Post » JLGunner  
    • sWampy
      Posted on January 5, 2012 at 3:10pm

      I’m all for the 2nd amendment, and personally believe open carry should be the law of the land, on land, in courtrooms, everywhere. But I think you get into trouble letting people hide loaded weapons and sneak them into places, they often forget about them, and carelessly leave them unprotected. A couple of years back we had a woman with a loaded pistol leave it under the pew in church while she was on stage singing. Her 4 year old grand child crawled under the pew, found it and discharged it. She was like oh, I forgot it was in there, oops.

      Personally I think any private property owner, where it’s a daycare, church, bar, mall, air plane carrier, or private home should have the right to ask you to either check your gun at the door, leave it outside in your car, or keep it in the checked baggage.

      Report Post »  
    • progressiveslayer
      Posted on January 5, 2012 at 3:16pm

      @SWAMPY Let’s see what Rick has to say about our second amendment right,http://www.ammoland.com/2012/01/04/rick-santorums-anti-gun-history/

      Report Post » progressiveslayer  
  • JLGunner
    Posted on January 5, 2012 at 2:39pm

    People looking for a better life or to persue the American dream would never threaten anyones life. These are peaceful people just looking to better themselves. (reality = You mess with my freebeez and you will pay the price.)

    Report Post » JLGunner  
  • THE TRUTH SHALL MAKE YOU FREE
    Posted on January 5, 2012 at 2:38pm

    Mistakes happen…look at the GOP party, they mistakenly believe they are conservative…

    Report Post » THE TRUTH SHALL MAKE YOU FREE  
    • JLGunner
      Posted on January 5, 2012 at 2:47pm

      I know, ya got that Trojan Horse Ron Paul in there.

      Report Post » JLGunner  
    • progressiveslayer
      Posted on January 5, 2012 at 3:05pm

      @THE TRUTH SHALL MAKE YOU FREE They are delusional aren’t they? So easily convinced they’re conservative.

      Report Post » progressiveslayer  
    • MeteoricLimbo
      Posted on January 5, 2012 at 5:10pm

      @ THE TRUTH SHALL MAKE YOU FREE

      Honesty is a good place to begin Sir.

      Report Post » MeteoricLimbo  
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